Pakistan has created and patented the world’s first hemostat dressing, capable of stopping bleeding within seconds and potentially saving tens of thousands of lives each year. This groundbreaking product utilizes a biopolymer based on glycosaminoglycans sourced from marine life.
The hemostat dressing, commercially known as KytoStat®, works by interacting with the negatively charged blood components on its surface, triggering rapid platelet thrombosis at the site of bleeding, which immediately halts the blood flow.
Developed under the leadership of Dr. Muhammad Yar at the Interdisciplinary Research Center in Biomedical Materials (IRCBM) at COMSATS University Islamabad Lahore Campus, the dressing was created using an affordable biopolymer, chitosan, extracted from marine sources.
KytoStat® positions Pakistan among the few countries in the world that have successfully developed this technology. After years of rigorous trials, it has been approved by the Drug and Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) and patented by the Intellectual Property Organization of Pakistan (IPO).
With almost five million deaths annually, abnormal bleeding from car accidents and other occurrences is one of the world’s major causes of death. According to a study, just traffic accidents cause 2.8 million injuries and over 146,000 fatalities each year.
